STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK

You forgot where you put your car keys? No sweat! It’s all part of the art of forgetting.

Neuroscientist Lisa Genova tried to put minds at ease Wednesday night during St. Luke’s annual Health and Well-Being Speaker Series as she normalized such things as forgetting people’s names and forgetting why you went into another room.

We think that memory is supposed to be perfect. So, when we forget anything, we think that’s a sign of weakness, a sign we have Alzheimer’s, she told a full house at the Church of the Big Wood. But even those with super memories sometimes fail. Case in point: Yo Yo Ma, who memorizes hundreds of scores but forgot to take his $2.5 million cello out of the taxi.

Our brains are not designed to remember people’s names, she said.

We’re more apt to remember a chance encounter with a moose while on vacation with our children 30 years ago. The reason? Seeing the moose is new or novel. There’s an emotional connection with your children being there. And there’s likely repetition involved as you tell the story over and over to friends and family. This enables the brain to link together experiences.

Most of what someone learns today will be forgotten by tomorrow–after all, do we really need to remember the daily details of fixing breakfast?

Sameness, such as our breakfast routine or even what we did during the pandemic, is not conducive to remembering, said Genova, author of “Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting.”

“The year of the pandemic was the most memorable year that you don’t remember. Many people complained of having fuzzy thinking during that time,” she said, noting there was no emotional connection between people, no new experiences or anything else that would have forged memory connections.

If you find yourself forgetting where you put your phone, your keys, your glasses…focus.

“You can always remember what you pay attention to,” said Genova, whose “Still Alice,” the fictional account of a Harvard professor who develops early onset Alzheimer’s Disease, became an Oscar-winning movie.

Genova recounted how she left her car in a parking garage and could not remember where she parked it. She walked up and down ramps pushing the buzzer on her key until she found it.

“I couldn’t find my car not because I had a terrible memory or because I had amnesia or because I had Alzheimer’s. I couldn’t find my car because I didn’t pay attention to where I parked it.”

“The No. 1 remedy for losing glasses and keys is: Slow down and be in the present. I even say out loud, ‘I’m putting my phone in the basket,’ ” she added.

It’s normal to walk into the kitchen and wonder why you’re there. That’s because the context of the reason you went may not be in front of you. Retrace your steps and you may find the open book in the other room that prompted you to get up and go to the kitchen for your eyeglasses, Genova said.

Alzheimer’s is when you can’t remember the names for common objects, such as a cat, multiple times throughout the day. Alzheimer’s is when can’t remember where you put your keys and you find them in the refrigerator, she said.

If you fight with a spouse, you remember every word because there’s an emotional connection. And, if you drink a cup of coffee while studying for a test, you’re more apt to remember your presentation because caffeine stimulates the brain. Be sure and take the test caffeinated because repeating the experience will help you remember, she added.

We use memory for everything we do—because of memory we know how to walk and talk, Genova said.  At the same time, it can be considered inaccurate and fallible. The reason five people can see the same accident and come up with five different stories is because each one is focusing on something different.  

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO IMPROVE MEMORY HEALTH?

• Get seven to nine hours of sleep daily. You can’t focus if you’re sleepy. And your memory solidifies when you sleep. A 20-minute nap also gives the hippocampus a rest to create more space for memory making.
• Keep your brain cognitively active by learning a new language or a new instrument. Every time you learn something new, you create new neuropathways. But don’t rely on Sudoku because you’re not learning new words--you’re thinking of words you already know.
• Combat chronic stress. Chronic stress used to involve avoiding predators. Now it’s caused by ruminating. about our perceived mistakes. Meditation and deep breathing relax the brain so your memory can work. Breathe through the nose to the count of four, hold one count and breathe out your nose to the count of four. This informs your physiology that you’re safe.
• Exercise daily.
• Eat the Mediterranean diet.

Aduhelm, the first drug approved for Alzheimer’s in 18 years, shows promise, Genova said. But you have to take it early so it can blow out the flame before Alzheimer’s becomes a roaring fire. And it’s not inexpensive, estimated to cost $26,000 a year or more.

TENDER MOMENTS COUNT, EVEN WITH ALZHEIMER’S

Memory does not define what it means to be human, Lisa Genova said:

“My grandmother had Alzheimer’s and she forgot all her grandchildren. But you don’t need memory to love and feel loved. You don’t need memory to feel a full range of emotions. She didn’t know who we were, but she loved us and we loved her. And, even though someone might not remember you were there 10 minutes after you leave, they do feel love while you’re there.”

SIP AND SHOP

. McLaughlin will host a Sip & Shop for St. Luke's Wood River Foundation showcasing the shop's fall collection on Friday, Aug. 11. Fifteen percent of purchases between noon and 5 p.m. will be donated to the Foundation.